I'm Still Here
by YamiEternalSpirt
Summary: A short story from the memories of Team 7 of a good friend.


I'm Still Here [Naruto Short Story]

As the sunsets over the edge of the horizon, Naruto watches as it sinks lower and lower into the sky. It reminds him of the times he spent with his two best friends: Sasuke Uchiha and Sara Imara. It had been so long ago when the three of them had been together. He smiles at the memories of how Sasuke and he had always been fighting, and Sara would get between them and try to keep them from going farther. She would hold her hands in front of her and smile nervously when she would get glared at. She was never like one of the girls in Konoha, well, at least she wasn't the kind of girl who would chase a "certain person" around.

Naruto found himself thinking of Sara whenever he saw the setting or rising sun. It reminded him of how Sara would always drag the two boys up to the top of the Hokage faces to watch the sun when they had a chance. The more he thinks of her and all the memories the odd trio, the more vivid the pictures in his mind piece together once again. The one thing he always wanted to forget ever happened: How she met her end.

:~:~:~Flashback~:~:~:~:

"C'mon! C'mon! Hurry up you two! It's about to start!" Sara called out to her two sulking friends. She ignores them as she bounces ahead of them up the stairs of the Hokage monument. Wind blows her sunset orange hair around her, emerald green eyes sparkling. She huffed when she gets to the top and finds Naruto and Sasuke are only half way up. She puffed out her cheeks before yelling out loudly, "Hurry up, will you?" They both rolled their eyes but can't help but smile, they've seen the setting sun a million times, why should this be any different? For Sara, it never got boring. In fact, it was her favorite thing in the world to do.

When the two boys reached the top, Sara was already watching the colors crossing the sky. A peaceful smile on her face. The pinks, oranges, purples, yellows, blues, and reds seemed to spill across the sky like jars of paints being thrown at a blue canvas. But not before long, an angry voice called. "Sara! Get your $$ home now!" Sara sighed and stood, but didn't move for a few seconds and the yelling continued. "'Kay! See you guys tomorrow!" She said brightly. She took the stairs two at a time as she ran away from Sasuke and Naruto.

Sara's face lost its smile as soon as she was out of sight of the boys, and started slowing her pace. She knew what was coming as soon as she reached the end of the stairs. An Angry drunken father who would take out all his anger on her. She knew all to well. That's how it had been since her mother passed away four years ago. Drinking was a way for her father to let go and forget why he was so sad. There was nothing she could do for her father, except be his punching bag. He would blame her and hit her until he was satisfied. She was used to it, but it still hurt to be hit and blamed for something she hadn't even know had happened until days after.

Sara had friends, of course, but no matter, she was still lonely inside. She would always smile and tell everyone it was all right, but inside she kept the truth hidden in stone and ice. She didn't want anyone to know.

I am a question to the world

Not an answer to be heard

Or a moment that's held in your arms

And what did you do think you'd ever say

I won't listen anyway 

you don't know me

And I'll never be what you want me to be

As soon as Sara's bare foot touches the ground, she gets backhanded. Her father stood in front of her with a slight pink color across his face, and a very mad expression. Well, that's how most people would view it, but Sara could see it was just the alcohol making him feel angry, and underneath it he was very sad and tiered. She stood up slowly and took her fathers hand, tugging him in the direction of their home. He was so out of it that he didn't even notice that he was being dragged home. But when the outside world is closed out by doors and walls within their house, he beats Sara.

A while after he's was done with her, she lay on her bedroom floor. Bruises and cuts cove her body. The blood that had dripped from the cuts on her face were mixed with tears. Her tears weren't from the pain in her body, but from the pain in her heart. He had yelled that he wished she had never been born, and if she hadn't then his wife would have never had to die. That it was all her fault and everyone would be better off if she disappeared. She had heard him say those things so many times before, but no matter, it still hurt even more than the beatings he gave her.

After a few hours of rest, Sara forced herself to get up and walk to the bathroom to see how bad the damage was. What she saw in the mirror didn't surprise her at all. A twelve year old girl with matted shoulder length orange hair covered in blood and dark spots. But the thing she could never get used to was her eyes. When she was with friends out in the village, her emerald danced with happiness, but when she was alone at home, her eyes looked dead and lightless. She hated the look of eyes like that, that was part of the reason she became friends with Sasuke. His eyes were like that, and she wanted to at least try and make his life a little brighter.

Sara pulls out a box of pills and swallows five of them, one at a time. Even after the first one she could feel the cuts healing and the bruises started to disappear. She brushed out her hair and changed out of her torn white and red dress, into a long sleeved purple shirt that reached her mid-thigh and a pair of brown knee-long shorts. She tied her hair into a ponytail. The only thing out of place was her dead eyes. No matter what, in her home she could never bring herself to smile as she could when she was in the village.

And what did you think you'd understand

I'm a boy, no I'm a man

You can't take me and throw me away

And how can you learn what's never shown

Yeah, you stand here on your own

They don't know me 'cause I'm not here

When she was finished, Sara flopped down on her bed and feel into a deep sleep until early morning. She woke on time. She hurried and ate a fast breakfast of eggs, toast, and milk, then made breakfast for her father for when he woke up. He really had lost his mind when his wife had died, he wouldn't feed himself unless given food and would only drink alcohol and sake. He wouldn't spend money on anything besides those two drinks. Sara really couldn't hate him though, she knew how he felt. And if she had been older, she most likely would have done the same thing.

As Sara slipped out of the house, the morning sunlight was already starting to spill across the sky once again. Her eyes lit up as she got ready for the day. Sensei had told their team of four to meet him at the bridge at six o'clock. Of course, everyone knew better than to get to there right on time. It was still half an hour before six, so Sara headed to the training grounds to get in extra training. She wasn't the greatest ninja, but she worked as hard as she could to become as best as she could. She knew that she had endurance, so that helped when training for hours.

"Sara!" Naruto's voice called to her. She turned to him, panting. "Can I train with you?" He asked brightly. She smiled and replied, "Sure!" They trained for a hour before they started to fight each other. Fighting each other was one of the things they had the most fun doing. They got the thrill of a fight, but never really used their full powers.

"Natuto! Sara! Kakashi-sensei's here! Come on!" Sakura yelled running up to the two. "Okay. Lets go Naruto! Sakura!" Sara ran to the bridge before her teammates could catch up to her. "Our first mission today is to get a gem stone back from thiefs," Kakashi told them. They all followed behind their teacher, Naruto picking a fight with Sasuke, Sakura trying to flirt with Sasuke, Sasuke ignoring them both. Sara hung back a few steps behind th group. She always felt she was different and a outcast when she was with these people. But then again, she always felt as if she could hardly be seen, even if people looked right at her.

And I want a moment to be real

Wanna tough things I don't feel, wanna hold on and feel I belong

And how can the world want me to change

They're the ones that stay the same, they don't know me

'Cause I'm not here

And you see the things they never see

All you wanted I could be

Now you know me and I'm not afraid

And I wanna tell you who I am

Can you help me be a man

They can't break me as long as I know who I am

Sasuke noticed her, and drifted back so he was walking next to her. "What's with you?" he asked, glancing at her. "Hm? What do you mean?" Sara asked smiling at him. Sasuke didn't reply, but did wonder what was up with her. She would sometimes just drag behind the rest of their group with a look that seemed to suggest she was deep in thought. No one ever questioned it, but everyone noticed how she would hang back and just watch everyone else from far away.

Their mission went with out flaw. The worst they got was a few scratches and bumps, but nothing worse. The group had a few more missions to do that day. Just the boring D rank missions, but it still gave Sara enough money to get food for dinner. "'Kay guys! I have to go! See you later!" Sara smiles and waves as she walks to a near by store. She got a few bags of food and other supplies. She walked home feeling tiered from the missions that day. She hummed a song as she neared the house.

She stopped at the front door for a few moments before walking inside. It didn't seem her father was home yet, so she would have time to eat and maybe, for once, have a relaxing evening. She didn't bother to turn on the light when she entered the kitchen. It was still sunset, but there was enough light that there was no need to for the light from a light bulb. Sara set the bags on the counter and started looking through them for what she could make for herself. She didn't notice the shadow of a man growing from the doorway.

And I want a moment to be real

Wanna touch things I don't feel, wanna hold on and feel I belong

And how can the world want me to change

They're the ones that stay the same

They can't see me

Well I'm still here

They can't tell me who to be

'Cause I'm not what they see

Yeah, the world is still sheepin', while I keep on dreamin' for me

And their words are just whispers and lies that I'll never believe

Naruto and the others had been wondering where Sara had been for the past few days. She hadn't shown up for training or missions. She wasn't the type of person to skip or not do her job. She must have been doing something for the old third Hokage. Some times he gave them all different missions at the same time. Yeah, that must be it! But she would always tell them if she was going on a mission without them. Hm, maybe she had to hurry off and didn't get time to tell them? Ah who knows? It is Sara, and she's unpredictable sometimes.

Sakura stood staring up at the sky, wondering where Sara was. She didn't want to admit it, but it just didn't feel right without Sara there. Even if Naruto was always so happy and hyper, Sara was the one who would always be able to stop Naruto and Sasuke from fighting. She had a talent for making peace between those two. That was a thing Sakura couldn't do that she could. Plus, Sara was close to Sasuke, as a friend, but still. Sakura wished she could be more like that. That girl could make friends with a wall if she wanted. She was so friendly and bright. The only thing that always seemed out of place was that Sara would stand away from groups of people

Kakashi appeared. "You're late!" Naruto and Sakura yelled at their sensei. Kakashi didn't even flinch. He looked at them with a hard expression. "We need to go meet wit the Hokage. Now." He said. The three team members are shocked. What could have happened to make Kakashi-sensei this serious? But none the less, they followed Kakashi to the Hokage building. Something told them that it wasn't going to be something good.

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke stood before the third Hokage, waiting for what he wanted to say. "This is very important," he started. The whole room seemed to be holding it's breath. "I'm going to say this bluntly. Sara Imara is dead." They went pale. Hearts beat faster and faster. No. It couldn't be true. It just couldn't! "N-no! That's not true!" Naruto yelled with tears starting to fall down his face. Sakura dropped to the floor and started sobbing. Sasuke couldn't move. Sara had been a best friend to them all. And now she was suddenly...gone? That just couldn't happen. But it was true.

"We found her beaten and dead in her house last night. She had died three days ago. But the doctors confirmed it wasn't the beating that killed her." The Hokage held up the box of pills Sara took every time she was beaten. "These pills can heal the body little by little. If she took enough of them at a time, she could fully restore her body. We've come to the conclusion that she was beat often and used these almost everyday so no one would know the truth. These are good for healing, yes. But if used too often, they start to act as a poison. We'll never know the real reason why she did this, but it was most likely to protect her father. She was a strong girl indeed."

And I want a moment to be real

Wanna touch things I don't feel, wanna hold on and feel I belong

And how can they say I never change

They're the ones, they stay the same

I'm the one now

'Cause I'm still here

I'm the one

'Cause I'm still here

I'm still here 

I'm still here

I'm still here

:~:~:~Flashback End~:~:~:

No one would forget her. Not Naruto. Not Sakura. Not Sasuke. Even if they are have all gone their own ways. Sara was a person none of them could ever forget. And whenever the sunset or the sun rose, her face would appear in the sky. Her hair the orange sky. Her smile the sun.


End file.
